Sox, streak fizzle in Fenway drizzle

Author(s):

Michael Silverman

The sellout streak at Fenway Park is over.

And so is Joel Hanrahan’s honeymoon with the Red Sox.

The new closer blew a save in spectacular, B-movie, schlock-meister fashion last night, throwing a match on the Red Sox’ 5-3 lead and turning it into a 8-5 Orioles victory that totally messed up the home team’s season-opening mojo.

Hanrahan began his inning ominously, allowing a solo home run to Chris Davis. With the one-run lead, Hanrahan retired the next two batters. Crisis averted. Seemingly. Then, the next three batters reached: single, walk, walk.

That uh-oh feeling turned into OMG, first, when Hanrahan unleashed a 55-foot pitch that eluded catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia and allowed Alexi Casilla to score the tying run. Then Manny Machado turned on a 1-0 Hanrahan pitch, blasting a three-run homer over the Monster that turned the remnants of the 30,438 paying fans into a pack of unhappy paying customers.

Boos all around.

Daniel Nava had positioned himself to be the hero, hitting a sixth-inning solo home run that broke a 3-3 deadlock. Saltalamacchia followed with a home run to right that provided the insurance run Hanrahan totally forgot to pay the premium for.

The Red Sox are now 5-3 on the season.

Their sellout streak ended at 794 regular-season games.

The game went into a rain delay after the fifth inning with the score tied 3-3.

The theme of the game was established early.

After Nate McLouth led off with a walk, Machado followed with a hard-hit fly ball to the gap in right-center. Right fielder Shane Victorino and center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury converged on it, each arriving at about the same time. Victorino pulled up and appeared to block the vision of Ellsbury, who could not catch the ball.

From afar, it looked as if Ellsbury had not called off Victorino or if he had, he had done so too late. But replays suggested he had called for the ball early, but Victorino did not get out of the way fast enough.

Ellsbury was charged with the error, the Sox’ first of the season.

McLouth reached third on the drop and Nick Markakis’ groundball drove him in to give the Orioles the 1-0 lead.

Sox starter Ryan Dempster used up 29 pitches in that frame, while Orioles counterpart Jake Arrieta needed only nine in his first inning.

The Red Sox got even, however, in the second.

Nava drew a two-out walk just before Jarrod Saltalamacchia stroked a RBI double high off the center field wall to tie the game.

In the third, the Red Sox took a brief lead.

Jackie Bradley Jr.’s first plate appearance at Fenway Park was a roaring success. He led off with a walk, and then scored easily as Ellsbury sent a triple past diving (unwise decision) left fielder McLouth. The ball rolled into the corner, and Ellsbury reached third standing up. Victorino knocked him in with a sacrifice fly and the Red Sox’ lead was 3-1.